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Language emergency: 'Post-truth' declared word of the year by Oxford Dictionaries


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Virginia
16.11.2016, 23:42 (Updated 16.11.2016, 23:57)
I have never heard of "Post-truth'.  Wish I could meet some Brits on this board, so I can ask them what in world are they doing to our shared language.  Do the Canadians know about this ?   I will listen for it on the BBC, but until your writers put "Post-truth' in your sitcoms or murder mysteries Americans won't know what you are talking about.   Has 'Post-truth' been translated to other languages.  I read the Oxford explanation but I am still not sure what it means.
Hatty is a syndicate boss now
17.11.2016, 02:19
Bascially, post-truth politics are applied in political discussion that appeals to emotions to such an extent that truth and facts presented as a counterargument are simply ignored.

Also, the term in it's current meaning was first used in the *American* Grist magazine in 2010. Why are you blaming the Brits?

Why would you expect a political term to appear on shallow tv shows? Brits are smart enough to understand that entertainment programs are just that, not a tool for political education.
Virginia
17.11.2016, 05:24 (Updated 26.11.2016, 19:02)
I never read Grist. It is not well known.  I have most frequently read the Atlantic Monthly magazine for the last 50 years.  It was founded in 1857.

I blame the Brits because  "Post-Truth" was nominated  as word of the year by Oxford English Dictionaries instead of Webster's Dictionary http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-37995600

In America it is probably still a slang term but I will look it up to be sure.  Because of my age my use of slang maybe archaic, but I can read Shakespeare

      I don't expect "post-truth"  on TV shows, but that is where most Americans learn British English.  As I said I will keep an ear open for it on the BBC.  I do agree that political debate this year has had little to do with facts and much to do with emotions.    BTW  One of our most popular TV entertainment shows is "Saturday Night Live" and it often has political satire.   I did not know the Brits eschewed political satire.
Hatty is a syndicate boss now
17.11.2016, 19:53
Both dictionaires have declared their own WOTY each year separately. Why all the salt, considering MW's is usually coming out in December? It's not like Oxford is stealing some kind of title or harming MW's WOTY in any way.

It's up to you to decide which one of them your personal favorite is, but bashing Oxford for selecting something you don't know the meaning of? Why?

Also, SNL having satirical elements still doesn't make it a surrogate for articles and educational political publications.
Virginia
17.11.2016, 20:40
Hatty,  I appreciate your passion, but you are taking me too seriously.   My comments are "tongue in cheek" and I did not mean to insult you.  Actually I find the OED fascinating.  I like to read where words come from in the OED.   Maybe you and I should be proactive and pick our own favorite new word for the year.  We could even borrow a word from another language to add to our set of usable words.  Other languages are borrowing from us.  I hope to pick my word for 2016 before the end of the year.
Hatties do it from behind
18.11.2016, 02:09
No worries, i did not feel insulted in any way, I just failed to realize the sarcasm and my inner debater felt the need to point things out.
Virginia
20.11.2016, 06:11
One of our favorite comics - Stephen Colbert -  gave a 2 minute explanation of "Truthiness" vs "Post-truth".  It starts at 5 minutes into the YouTube link below.

          A few Germans have asked me what I mean by "Gallows Humor".  I think Colbert's comment on the Pentagon are a good example  The Pentagon is the USA military headquarters.   Come to think of it, I should look up "Gallows Humor" in the OED so I know where it came from.  

         https://youtu.be/Ck0yqUoBY7M
Virginia
25.11.2016, 06:44
I just found "post-truth" in the headlines of the English version of a German Newspaper. (see link below)   The staff must be more familiar with British English than I am.  They probably get to England more often than I do.  

http://www.dw.com/en/fake-news-medias-post-truth-problem/a-3...
Wolfgang
25.11.2016, 17:34
Colbert is great... he's having a hard time with Trump though. You can see he's making jokes about it, but he's really worried. I bet his audience is beginning to get sick of a Trump based monologue every night ;)
Virginia
26.11.2016, 00:49 (Updated 26.11.2016, 00:57)
Du hast recht.     I was hoping we would have our own Angela Merkel.
Wolfgang
09.12.2016, 13:09
Now "postfaktisch" (post-fact) is word of the year in Germany. Oh dear.
Virginia
12.12.2016, 18:51
" postfaktisch" tut mir leid.  Im Jahr 2017 wünsche ich besser neue Wörter für die englischen und deutschen.  

Maybe some other language will give us a nice word ?

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